The present invention relates generally to food dispensing apparatus and, more particularly, to an apparatus for accurately dispensing sauces or condiments or the like.
Conventional ways of saucing pizza require manual application of a sauce such as a spicy tomato sauce on the pizza dough. Manual application of the pizza sauce is often performed by a novice, hurried chef who distorts the house recipe and produces an uneven coating. Attempts to provide an accurate dose and an even coating require too much time. In addition, using ladles, spatulas, brushes, and the like in handling the pizza sauce may raise sanitary concerns.
Ladles with brushes or spatulas require a vat of pre-mixed sauce from which is ladled an inconsistent portion. The sauce is brought, dripping to the dough surface, leaving an unsanitary trail of sauce on the table and the sides of the vat. The chef must carefully, expertly spread the sauce across the surface of the dough without leaving puddles or voids or damaged dough. This approach is the least costly, but is also the least consistent and is rather unsanitary.
Spoodles incorporate a hose or nozzle for pumping the sauce into an attached measuring or spreading ladle. The bottom of the ladle is used to spread the sauce. The spoodle is returned, dripping, to the holding device, thereby leaving an unsanitary trail of sauce on the table and the inside of the holding device. This approach is more costly and more consistent, but is still unsanitary.
Pouring nozzles are much more consistent in portion control for dispensing the sauce, but they are rather costly. The chef must still carefully and expertly spread the sauce across the surface of the dough without leaving puddles or voids or damaged dough. The spreading device and its storage remain unsanitary.